City of Ember

For centuries, the residents of the underground City of Ember have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights and quiet contentment. But when the City's massive power generator begins to fail, the street lamps fade - along with the hopes of the townspeople. Now it will be up to two courageous teenagers to follow a trail of clues left by the ancient builders to find the way out of Ember before their world is plunged into complete darkness.

Opinion

From the critics

Community Activity

Comment

A good movie, but quite different from the book series. I was a little disappointed when I watched it, but it's worthwhile. Would recommend for someone wanting an adventure movie starring kids, but would not recommend to someone who has read the book series and wants to try out the film.

I have not read the book, which gives me a different perspective on the movie from reviewers so far. The plot does tell a story but I suspect the movie is too short to do justice to the book, which is not unusual. Given that you probably can't cover all scenes in a book they probably should have blended some together so they could spend time giving the characters more depth and a better flow to the story. The movie reminded me a bit of the Dune movie which really seemed to be a movie covering isolated scenes in the book rather than a story-telling medium on its own. This one was more complete but they then dedicated 1 minute to a scene needing 5 minutes, and they suddenly jumped to the next. The scenery is mostly well done although the CGI is obviously CGI. All in all it's a bit of a shallow rush.

The City of Ember is a great book turned movie, and honestly does a good job portraying the many characters from the book and the overall story. The movie itself is colorful and intriguing for all ages, with its different yet familiar concepts and the entire world which the people find themselves in. This film tells a great story and follows the core concept of the story, and even though it can get dark at times it always comes back to being a fun story which the entire family can enjoy. Overall, this is a great movie which can be shared with the whole family, making a great movie night. - @Kuhaica of the Teen Review Board at the Hamilton Public Library

Okay movie, but all of the action and suspense were saved until the very end of the movie. The actors seemed a bit too old for the movie. Doon (Harry Treadaway) was played by a 24 year old actor whereas as Lina (Saoirse Ronan) was played by a 14 year old actress.

Summary

In the midst of a nuclear war, the Builders of the underground "City of Ember" place secret instructions to future generations in a small box, timed to open in 200 years. The box is entrusted the mayor of the underground complex. Each mayor, in turn, passes the box onto his or her successor. When the box has 47 more years left on the time-lock, the mayor holding the box dies suddenly. The significance of the box had not been explained to anyone else, and the mayor's family places it in a junk-filled closet. When 200 years have passed, the time-lock clicks the box open, but the event goes unnoticed.

For generations, the people of Ember have lived in a huge underground complex built as a refuge for humanity. It is built into a vast cavern so high that it is filled with regular-sized buildings. Far above the tops of the buildings are banks of floodlights that light the city during the day and provide light for the greenhouses. The lights are powered by a massive generator. Now it is year 247 and Ember threatens to fall into darkness as the generator begins to fail. Blackouts are occurring with increasing frequency and last longer each time. The reserves of canned goods and light bulbs are becoming depleted. Much of the knowledge about how to utilize and repair the systems necessary for the city's survival has also slowly been lost over succeeding generations.

At a rite of passage for all graduating students called Assignment Day, the mayor (Bill Murray) stands before the graduating students as they choose, by lottery, what their occupations will be. Lina (Saoirse Ronan), a young girl dreaming to be a messenger, is assigned to be a "Pipeworks Laborer" and Doon (Harry Treadaway) is assigned "Messenger". The two swap occupations despite the fact that is it prohibited. Lina goes home to find her grandmother searching for something in the closet, which turns out to be the lost metal box. Unable to piece the torn papers inside the box together, Lina nevertheless resolves to decipher their meaning and enlists Doon's help. As blackouts become more frequent, Lina and Doon realize that the information inside the box could lead to the salvation of Ember. Racing against time, the two follow the clues, and eventually come into conflict with the mayor and other corrupt politicians.

During their flight, it turns out that their parents had once joined in an attempt to make their way beyond Ember - an attempt which ended when Lina's father drowned after their tunneler hit an underground river. The pair realizes the document is a set of instructions on how to escape the city, and they search for the hidden exit. They also discover that the mayor has been hoarding canned food in a secret room. When they report the theft, they are declared traitors. Now on the run from the mayor's police, the pair puts their escape plan into action. They fetch Poppy, Lina's younger sister, and follow the instructions, which leads them to the surface where they see and feel the natural air and sky for the first time. At first, they despair, because it is dark and they assume that they have not escaped, but they do not realize it is night time. In the morning, as the sun rises, they gaze in amazement at the glowing sun and blue sky. They then tie a message of their discovery to a rock and drop it back down to the city, where it is found by Doon's father (Tim Robbins).

Lina Mayfleet lives in an underground city which was constructed to save the human race. The builders who constructed this underground city sent down instructions in a locked box, set to open in 200 years. The box was given to the mayor who was to pass it to the next mayor, and so forth. But as it was passed from mayor to mayor the box is lost and forgotten. 200 years passes, and the city is breaking down and running out of supplies. It is up to Lina and her friend Doon Harrow to save the city and all of it's inhabitants.